High Taxes, Daunting Regulations Prompt Americans to Switch States

It’s not just New Jersey: High taxes and overregulation are also driving outmigration from states like New York and California, and into Florida, Texas and other less burdensome states.

Theodore Cangero of the American Institute for Economic Research looks at the correlation between taxes and regulation, and internal migration between the states. He concludes:

“High-tax states are losing human capital and financial wealth to low-tax states with more personal and regulatory freedom. When people leave high-tax states, it tends to reduce business formation, job creation, and consumption in those states. This means a smaller tax base to support high government spending.”

NJBIA’s analysis of the financial impact of outmigration of New Jersey taxpayers concluded that more than $20 billion in net adjusted gross income left the state over the last 11 years, with $2.4 billion leaving in 2015 alone.